Brainspotting Therapy
Where you look affects how you feel
Have you ever noticed yourself starring or gazing off in the distance, at a spot on the floor, wall or ceiling? Have you noticed yourself looking away, maybe your eyes shifts up, down or to the side or even closing your eyes when you are really thinking about something you are saying or want to say, particularly when the subject is emotionally heavy?
As a person in relationships with others professionally and personally, I notice this often. I notice people becoming self-conscious about it and force themselves to make and keep eye contact with me. We are taught that we have to keep eye contact with people when in conversation, its not okay and maybe even rude not to. Yet, you might notice your gaze continues to drift back to these spots or a desire to close your eyes. What you may not realize is that rather than avoiding eye contact, you are actually intuitively accessing your own internal processing resources, entering deep neural connections and memories in your brain. A normal and natural way our brain accesses information. This is where brainspotting comes in.
What is Brainspotting?
Brainspotting is a powerful brain-body-mindfulness treatment modality that works by identifying, processing and releasing core neurophysiological sources of trauma, emotional/body pain, anxiety, depression, negative/unhelpful thinking, creativity block, and a variety of other challenging symptoms. Brainspotting utilizes a brain-spot (the places your eyes natural want to gaze to) in your visual field that connects to your limbic system, the location of the emotional experiences and sensations that are held in the brain and body. Enhanced with biolateral sounds and the dual attunement of a therapist, brainspotting enables you to gain access to your own internal resources, release experiences and symptoms that are typically out of reach of the conscious mind and its cognitive and language capacity.
Is Brainspotting helpful for me?
Yes! Brainspotting is helpful for anyone. It is helpful for people who want to heal and don’t want to retell their deep trauma to another person and those who are easily overwhelmed. Brainspotting is helpful for getting relief from fears/phobias such as: fearing of flying, particular animals like snakes or mice, and, fear of thunderstorms. Brainspotting is helpful for people who want to process unhelpful/negative thoughts and those who are struggling with their sense of self/self-esteem/self-confidence. Brainspotting is helpful for those who want to process feelings of shame and guilt and those who want to increase access to their creativity and performance. Brainspotting is helpful for those who feel stuck in therapy and people who want to make progress quickly. Come as you are and heal!
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What are the results of Brainspotting?
The goals of Brainspotting therapy and therapy in general is to move from:
surviving to thriving
dyregulation to regulation
emotional suffering to emotional wellness
hopelessness and despair to hopeful and confidence
Because the Brainspotting process targets body sensations/somatics, in addition, to the limbic system in the brain, there is a lot less talking during a Brainspotting therapy session. This is to ensure that the processing of experiences is not disrupted.
Interested in learning more?